METHODS: A cross sectional study was conducted in northeastern Malaysia involving 321 town service workers who were subjected to answer an interviewer-guided validated questionnaire which consists of sociodemographic, knowledge, attitude and practice information. Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS Version 20.
RESULTS: All of the respondents were Malay with mean (SD) age of 40.6 (10.28) years old. The mean (SD) duration of employment was 12.1 (9.62) years. Fifty four respondents (16.8%) had never heard of leptospirosis. Among the respondents, 215 (67.0%) of them had poor knowledge on leptospirosis. Meanwhile, 167 (52.0%) and only 128 (39.9%) of them had satisfactory attitude and practice respectively. It was found that knowledge on risk factors for leptospirosis was lacking. There were high risk attitudes such as drinking habit and protective equipment used during working with the favourable answers ranged from 67.3% to 89.1%. The weakest area identified in their practice was also on the use of protective equipment.
CONCLUSIONS: The workers' level of knowledge and practice were relatively poor despite an overall good practice on leptospirosis. This finding might expose them to an increased risk of contracting leptospirosis. Identified weak areas in their knowledge, attitude and practice will assist the policy makers to develop a focused and well-directed intervention program on leptospirosis infection.
RESULTS: The structures of synthesized bis-pyrimidine molecules were confirmed by physicochemical and spectral means. The synthesized compounds were further evaluated for their in vitro biological potentials i.e. antimicrobial activity using tube dilution method and anticancer activity against human colorectal carcinoma (HCT116) cancer cell line by Sulforhodamine B assay.
CONCLUSIONS: The biological study demonstrated that compounds s7, s8, s11, s14, s16, s17 and s18 have shown more promising antimicrobial activity with best MIC values than the cefadroxil (antibacterial) and fluconazole (antifungal) and compound s3 found to have better anticancer activity against human colorectal carcinoma (HCT116) cancer cell line.
METHOD: Psychiatric patients were eligible for recruitment to the study, when they fulfilled the following criteria: a diagnosis of schizophrenia, were aged between 18- and 65-years-old, and were able to give consent themselves. We recruited 118 individuals with schizophrenia. They were selected via systematic random sampling technique. All RSA-PIRV-M items were derived from the parent scale. These items were translated based on established procedures. The reliability estimates of the RSA-PIRV-M were based on Cronbach's alpha. We performed confirmatory factor analyses to examine the factor structure of the RSA-PIRV-M.
RESULTS: All Cronbach's alphas for the RSA-PIRV-M subscales were at least .70. With respect to the factor structure of the RSA-PIRV-M, our structural equation modeling findings suggest a five-factor model encompassing life goals, involvement, diversity of treatment options, choice, and individually-tailored services.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The interpretation of our findings is limited by small sample size, unique sample characteristics, and lack of further evidence for convergent validity. Notwithstanding these limitations, the RSA-PIRV-M is a promising tool in bridging gaps between our knowledge on recovery orientation and existing mental health service provision in Malaysia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).
METHODS: The EBMQ was developed based on a qualitative study, literature review and an expert panel. Face and content validity was verified by the expert panel and piloted among 10 participants. Primary care physicians with or without EBM training who could understand English were recruited from December 2015 to January 2016. The EBMQ was administered at baseline and two weeks later. A higher score indicates better knowledge, better practice of EBM and less barriers towards the implementation of EBM. We hypothesized that the EBMQ would have three domains: knowledge, practice and barriers.
RESULTS: The final version of the EBMQ consists of 80 items: 62 items were measured on a nominal scale, 22 items were measured on a 5 point Likert-scale. Flesch reading ease was 61.2. A total of 343 participants were approached; of whom 320 agreed to participate (response rate = 93.2%). Factor analysis revealed that the EBMQ had eight domains after 13 items were removed: "EBM websites", "evidence-based journals", "types of studies", "terms related to EBM", "practice", "access", "patient preferences" and "support". Cronbach alpha for the overall EBMQ was 0.909, whilst the Cronbach alpha for the individual domain ranged from 0.657-0.940. The EBMQ was able to discriminate between doctors with and without EBM training for 24 out of 42 items. At test-retest, kappa values ranged from 0.155 to 0.620.
CONCLUSIONS: The EBMQ was found to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess the knowledge, practice and barriers towards the implementation of EBM among primary care physicians in Malaysia.
METHOD: Electronic search (PubMed, Scopus and Google scholar) was conducted using the following search terms: "MRSA OR Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus AND Nigeria." Reference list of selected studies was scanned to identify more studies. Studies published between 2007 and 2017 that tested at least 30 non-duplicate S. aureus isolates were selected. An independent reviewer extracted data from the studies using a standardized form.
RESULTS: Twelve studies were included in this review. Overall, prevalence of MRSA infection increased from 18.3% (2009) to 42.3% (2013). The prevalence of MRSA infection was less than 50% in all the regions during the period under review. There was a decline in the prevalence of MRSA infection in the North-East (from 12.5% to 8.0%) between 2007 and 2012, and an increase in the South-West (from 20.2% to 47.4%) between 2006 and 2010. Wound, blood and urine specimens had the highest proportion of MRSA isolates. Non-susceptibility of MRSA strains to cotrimoxazole and tetracycline was greater than 85%.
CONCLUSION: Prevalence of MRSA infection in Nigeria is rising, albeit regional variations. Non-susceptibility to commonly prescribed, orally available and inexpensive antibiotics was high. Antimicrobial resistance surveillance system, infection control, and antimicrobial stewardship interventions are recommended.
METHOD: A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used to understand the experience of nurses caring for patients in the acute setting who had sustained a traumatic spinal injury with associated neurological deficit. Using the phenomenological approach guided by the insight of Gadamer and Max Van Manen, participants with a broad range of experience were recruited and interviewed. The responses were transcribed into a text and subjected to hermeneutic analysis. Burnard's (1991) 14-step process and the hermeneutic approach were used to interpret and understand the phenomenon of interest.
CONCLUSION: The study highlights the experience and challenges of providing care to these individuals. Although patients had significant physical disabilities and were often dependent physically, the nurses' concerns were directed more towards fulfilling their psychological needs. Nurses identified grieving patients and felt their role was to provide realistic hope to motivate them. They felt an internal tension regarding desensitisation towards their patients, but this was often an internal protective mechanism to deal with the significance of the events surrounding these patients. Nurses new to this setting took time to learn the routines and manage the unique challenges effectively. Caring for these patients gave the nurses the opportunity to understand their patients and their families, and appreciate that both groups will fluctuate in their behavior throughout the acute process, as they adjust to grief and loss.